Billionaire Bachelors 3 ; The Billionaire Falls(49)

Mark pulled up in front of the house and called out to Emily. He didn't get an answer so he headed up the stairs. He smiled as he pictured her laying there in their bed. She did tend to take a few naps now and then with the pregnancy wearing her out.

He quietly opened the door and stepped inside. Emily wasn't there either. He was still unconcerned. He searched through the house and then the pool and still couldn't find her. He knew she had to be around because her car was sitting in the garage. 

The property was far too quiet. He glanced around, then thought of the barn. She was most likely down there playing with the kittens again. He jogged down there and was relieved to see the open doors.

None of his guys would leave the door open, so she had to be in there. He stepped through and was stunned to not find her. He crept over by the kittens and his heart seemed to stop in his chest.

He dropped down to his knees and fingered the scarf he knew belonged to his wife. When he examined the drops of blood laying there in the hay, his panic was escalated. What had happened? He ran back up to the house and called the hospital. Maybe she'd injured herself and called an ambulance to pick her up.

A few minutes later Mark had zero answers. It was time to call in for some help and send out a search party. His wife never strayed far without telling someone where she was. He picked up the radio and had all his men come in immediately. He then called his father, who would call his brothers.

Mark organized the guys and they all took different sections of the ranch. He'd been gone for less than an hour, so she couldn't have gotten too far. He quickly thanked God he hadn't gotten on that jet. If he hadn't come home sooner she could've been out there all night before someone noticed her missing.

Mark shook his head as he realized he was most likely overreacting. She was probably down by the lake, or reading a book, not far from the house. He seemed to have an irrational fear something was wrong. He couldn't get the blood spatters from his mind. If it weren't for that, he wouldn't be nearly as panicked.

After the men searched every inch of the property, they met back at the house. Mary and Scott had returned and made coffee, tea and sandwiches and set them out for everyone. "You all need to eat and keep up your energy to find Emily," she demanded of the men. They all obeyed, even though no one had an appetite at all.

Every person on the ranch had fallen in love with Emily and with her missing there was huge stress among all the hands. Mark's family arrived while they were making a new game plan and he was relieved to have his father and brothers by his side.

"I've called search and rescue. They are going to bring out the dogs. We'll take them to the barn, which is the last place we suspect her being and they will track her," Lucas said.

"I don't understand where she could've possibly gone," Mark said, with his head in his hands. "It's been hours and she never leaves without letting someone know. Trevor will be home in a few minutes and she's always here when he walks in the front doors."

"We'll find her, Brother. I promise you," Alex said with conviction. He laid his hand on his brother's arm in comfort.

The three brothers continued to talk about different options, as the women made call after call, trying to see if she'd been seen anywhere.

A news crew showed up and Joseph gave them a brief statement and then asked them to put her picture up. When someone disappeared, who was associated with the Anderson's, it was front page news. Joseph hated he had to take the time away from his sons' to give a statement, even if it was a short one.

Joseph finished and then told them to please stay back from his family. He knew he wasn't going to get them to leave completely but he could keep them away from the house.

"Did they leave, Dad?" Mark asked when Joseph walked back in.

"Well, you know they won't leave completely until she's found but they're at the end of the drive and away from the house," Joseph reassured his son.

"We're going to find her right, Dad?" Mark asked his father. At that moment he felt more like a child, needing his father's comfort, than a grown man with children of his own.




 

 

"I guarantee you we will find her and she'll be okay," Joseph promised his son. He prayed to God he could keep that promise.

Emily woke up with a pounding head. She tried to lift her hand up, to feel what the pounding was and found she was unable to move her hands. She tried to sit up and couldn't move her body at all. She began to panic and started pulling her arms and legs.

She opened her eyes to view her surroundings. She was in some dingy bed, in a tiny room and her arms and legs were tied down. She started to cry as terror filled her. She couldn't understand what was happening.